“Correct.” Vera grinned at him. “Originally, it was intended to only block Ichorians because of a prophecy from Skye. But when we learned of Chanara’s awakening, Caro made a few updates to hide Stas from her own bloodline.”
“So you removed the memories of the decision to wake up Chanara, and the subsequent plans that followed, so the council wouldn’t know about the protective rune,” Lucian translated for the rest of the room. “That’s a brilliant strategy. But how did you orchestrate Osiris finding them?”
“Via Gabriel and Ezekiel. As I said, we all knew it was inevitable. And he provided the perfect cover as well to essentially distract the council. Astasiya disappeared while Osiris had Caro, which left Caro unable to say what happened to her daughter that day.”
“Because you altered her memory of Gabriel’s arrival,” Sethios said, making it a statement more than a guess. It was the natural solution. Otherwise, the Seraphim would have just discovered the affiliation during the interrogation process. If the Ichorians and Hydraians had mind readers, so did the angelic beings who had birthed all of humanity.
“I altered all her memories of Gabriel,” she confirmed. “The council has—or rather, had—no idea he was involved in any of this. Until now.”
“But how could they not even suspect him?” Astasiya asked, her tone riddled with confusion. “He’s my brother. Who else would have taken me that day?”
“Because he’s never given them reason to question his loyalty,” Vera replied. “When the council informed him of their intentions to rehabilitate his mother, he gave them his consent, stating it was a necessary maneuver after everything she’d done. The member from the council—his father—didn’t suspect any other reason to question Gabriel and left him alone to continue his mission of monitoring the CRF’s developments.”
“He purposely took that assignment so he would have an excuse to be around humans,” Leela said. “No one has paid any attention to him. He played it all perfectly.”
“Until his cover was blown this week by having all the abominations at his house. Owen was hard enough to hide. Everyone else, well, he pretty much gave up.” Vera shrugged. “He knew the council would call him in, which they’ve now done. And I tried to return as many memories as I could, but I held back the information on Chanara. I needed him to be genuinely surprised to see her. No one ever told him about her awakening, so I had to keep it that way.”
“So you’ve been playing with all our memories,” Sethios drawled, both amused and irritated. Mostly irritated. Sure, he’d agreed to it, or had maybe even suggested it. But that didn’t mean he had to fucking like the consequences of it. “What else have you altered, Vera?”
He knew better than to take the Seraphim at her word. She was always hiding some caveat or another.
“I created the memory loop that Stas and Gabe have been seeing in their dreams. I also sent you the vision earlier today to get you all moving.”
“So it was a memory loop. She’s not still drowning.” Astasiya sounded relieved, but her expression turned incredulous. “And you did this to keep us all from finding Caro.” Not a question, but a statement.
Still, the Seraphim confirmed with a “Yes. It was the only way to ensure Gabe didn’t try to save her from the council—which was his idea, by the way. He needed to remain off their radar to keep your location hidden.”
“Because they’ve never suspected him of helping,” Astasiya clarified.
“Correct,” Vera agreed. “There’s never been any reason to suspect he had anything to do with your disappearance.”
“Family loyalty isn’t a concept among Seraphim,” Leela elaborated. “We are created as a result of the Fates assigning us a fornication partner and date. It’s not necessarily romantic, nor does it foster adequate relationship building.”
“A solid control mechanism,” Lucian inserted thoughtfully. He hadn’t moved from his position by the couch, but the other Elder had disappeared into the kitchen. He was likely still listening to every word while busying himself with something else.
Probably food.
If Sethios had learned anything over the last week in Gabriel’s house, it was that the Hydraians were always fucking eating.
“As you said,” Lucian continued. “It makes forming bonds or relationships difficult when everything is dictated by a governmental structure. It ensures your loyalty remains to the hierarchy, not to anyone else. Therefore, they would have no reason to expect Gabriel to help his mother.”
“And not reacting at all to Adriel’s news of her rehabilitation—other than to agree to it—only further confirmed his lack of involvement,” Leela agreed.
“Why are you telling us this now?” Astasiya asked, the skepticism in her tone one Sethios knew very well because it was the same tone Caro had often used on him. “Why not a week ago?”
“It wasn’t the right time yet,” Vera replied.
“The right time was when we started looking for Caro last week,” Astasiya argued. “Instead, you pushed us along with visions that led my brother and father directly into Osiris’s trap.”
Her concern warmed Sethios in a manner he’d not felt in his very long life. Having a daughter had awakened certain parts of him he never knew existed. And it seemed she wasn’t done altering his world outlook.
I wish you were here to see her, Caro. She’s truly magnificent. Just like you, he thought, so incredibly proud despite the troubling topic at hand.
“Perhaps, but what would you have done?” Vera countered, arching a brown brow into her dark hairline. “Gone to the council and demanded her release?”
Astasiya didn’t reply, just narrowed her green eyes.
She has my eyes but your fiery spirit, angel, he thought, his heart aching at the sight of his daughter’s stubborn side showing. We created a masterpiece.
